NASTC

Between hope and a hard place: The potential import for owner-operators of a new federal administration as regards ELDs, speed limiters, CARB's pursuit of an Ultra-Low NOx emissions standard and more, from Western States Trucking Association rep and former O/O Joe Rajkovacz at NASTC's annual meeting.

NASTC's Dave Owen urges small fleets to use computer-assisted logs, "before they make you turn it into an ELD" by syncing with the engine, to do what they're designed to do as a "spellcheck for logs": solve the problem of form-and-manner mistakes represented in safety scores and stats.

Got CSA fatigue? This one's sure to tire you out, but take heed: the coalition of mostly small carrier-interest groups that's been active this past year on a variety of regulatory fronts sees numerous problems in the FMCSA's SFD proposal.

NASTC president David Owen is firm in his belief in a professional driver's ability to manage fatigue. And while he clearly knows the benefit of apnea treatment in those who suffer from it, Owen cites a fundamental disagreement with those who believe untreated apnea is public highway safety danger No. 1.

In an attempt to solve the problem of medical examiners' willingness to issue short-term conditional certifications — if any certification at all — pending results of a sleep study, NASTC has started offering both member and non-member carriers and drivers a sleep apnea screening and testing program that puts the process in the driver's hands.